Five arrested in Monday shooting that injured teen, resulted in crash

Editor's note: this story has been updated to correct the identification of Isaiah Smith. Elyria police have arrested five people in connection with a shooting that left a teenager with a gunshot wound and a vehicle crashed into a home on Washington Avenue on Monday. The investigation is still ongoing, but Police Chief James Welsh said that police believe the shooting on Monday may be connected to a shooting on Saturday evening that wounded an 18-year-old. Arrests in the case continued on Wednesday, as the fifth suspect was arrested at an apartment in Elyria following a brief standoff on Wednesday morning. According to a release sent by the department, police received a report of gunfire in the area of Washington Avenue and Harrison Street at 1:25 a.m. Responding officers saw an SUV driving with its headlights off and attempted to stop it, but the vehicle drove on Washington Avenue at high speed. Police gave chase, and after a short pursuit the SUV crashed into a tree and then the garage of a home on the 600 block of Washington Avenue. No passengers or residents were injured in the crash, police said. The occupants of the vehicle ran off after the crash, and police established a perimeter and began searching for the fleeing men using K-9 units and drones. Two firearms were left behind in the vehicle that were recovered by police. Following the crash, police discovered a 15-year-old who had been shot. He was taken to UH Elyria Medical Center for treatment of a gunshot wound and "is expected to recover." Police determined that the shooting itself occurred near the 300 block of Washington Avenue, where at least one residence was struck by gunfire. No one inside the residence was injured, the release said. Welsh said on Monday that dozens of spent bullet shell casings were discovered around the area. Detectives worked on the case through the course of the day on Monday and eventually identified the occupants of the vehicle and several other people believed to have been involved in the shooting, several of them teenagers. Police believe that Damarion Rucker, 21, of Elyria was the driver of the SUV and he has been arrested and charged with failure to comply and obstructing official business, both felonies. Rayon Davidson, 18, of Elyria was a passenger in the SUV, and he has been charged with felony obstructing official business. Both men were taken to the Lorain County Jail and have since made their initial appearances in Elyria Municipal Court. A 15-year-old boy who was also identified as a passenger in the SUV also was arrested and charged with obstruction, and he was transported to the Lorain County Detention Home. Police arrested another 15-year-old male who was identified as having been present at the shooting. After interviewing the teenager, police charged him with felonious assault, improperly discharging a firearm into a habitation, carrying a concealed weapon and receiving stolen property, all felonies, and transported him to the detention home. Elyria police have not released the identify of either of the charged 15-year-olds. The most recent arrest came Wednesday, when Marcel Martin, 18, of Elyria, was taken into custody by the Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force on three counts of felonious assault, improperly discharging a firearm into a habitation, carrying a concealed weapon and receiving stolen property, all felonies. An Elyria police officer told a Chronicle reporter that the task force engaged in a brief standoff with Martin at the Southwyck Manor apartments before he came out and was taken into custody. He is in jail awaiting his initial court appearance. During the investigation, officers recovered five firearms believed to be connected to the incident. Welsh told The Chronicle-Telegram on Wednesday that police had reason to believe that the shooting on Monday was connected to another shooting that resulted in injury on Saturday evening, although he said that the investigation was still ongoing. Three people have been arrested in that shooting, which occurred at 6:50 p.m. in the area of Foster Avenue and Penfield Avenue. Isaiah Smith, 18, of Elyria suffered a non-fatal gunshot wound in that incident and was taken to the UH Elyria. After his release from the hospital, Simmons was arrested and charged with three counts of felonious assault and one count each of tampering with evidence, receiving stolen property, carrying a concealed weapon and discharging a firearm in a prohibited premises. Police said that they believed that Simmons had engaged in an exchange of gunfire with a 15-year-old boy, who was also arrested and has been charged with two counts of felonious assault, carrying a concealed weapon, improperly discharging a firearm into a habitation and tampering with evidence. A 17-year-old was also charged with tampering with evidence in connection with the incident. Welsh said that the investigation into both shootings, as well as any connection between them, continues. "The recovery of five firearms and the arrests made in this case reflect the dedication and commitment of our officers and detectives to reducing violent crime and protecting our neighborhoods," Welsh said Wednesday. "If you make a personal choice to bring gun violence into our community, the Elyria Police Department will use every available resource to identify those responsible and hold them accountable. We are committed to keeping our residents informed, maintaining transparency wherever possible and continuing our mission to make Elyria a safer place to live, work and visit." Anyone with information regarding the shooting is encouraged to contact Detective Brittanny Miller at (440) 326-1215 or bmiller@cityofelyria.org. Police said that another shooting that occurred early Saturday morning is not believed to be connected either to the second shooting on Saturday or the Washington Avenue incident on Monday. Contact Owen MacMillan at (440) 329-7123 or omacmillan@chroniclet.com.